We all know about that fateful day on December 1, 1955, where the iconic civil rights legend refused to give up her seat to a White man and sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott movement, as well as helped ignite the civil rights movement under the leadership of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr..  Mrs. Parks was tired that day and although the bus’ ‘Whites Only section’ was filled, there was no way in hell she was about to give up her seat simply because it was.

Welp, fast forward to today, and there is no way in HELL her niece, Urana McCauley is about to let her aunt’s heroic efforts and ultimate arrest become watered down, nor tainted by some who are now comparing the unfortunate United Airlines’ incident- involving passenger, Dr. David Dao- to her Aunt Rosa’s. The comparison was sparked by Dao’s attorney during a recent press conference regarding Dao’s lawsuit against the airline. The attorey basically referred to the unfortunate incident as the ‘modern day Asian’ replica of Rosa Parks.’

In case you’ve been sleep for the past week, let us explain. A United Airlines passenger, Dr. David Dao, paid for his flight ticket, but was subsequently dragged off of the airplane for refusing to de-board the plane due to United’s overbooking their flights. He ended up with a cut lip and degrading tactics used against him by way of the United Airlines staffers as a result.

Now, it was incredibly wrong for those staffers to treat that man like a second class citizen. However, it’s also incredibly wrong to compare Mrs. Parks history changing defiance- which was a major influence ending legalized segregation against African Americans in public transportation, as well as in many other legalized aspects across America- to Dao getting dragged off of a plane over an airline ticket.

True, Dao should sue United Airlines for their employee’s actions, but Dao ain’t Rosa Parks. Parks risked her freedom (because it was illegal for a Black person to defy the segregation law at that time), her rights, her humanity, her life with her family, her job, her income, her well being, her emotional and psychological well being, and she risked being brutally beaten during the racist 1950’s when it was very common for officials to do that to African Americans and get away with it (well, kinda like it is now…unfortunately).

Anyways check out what Rosa Parks’ niece, Urana, respectfully said about this disrespectful comparison to her Aunt below. She touched on everything from her Aunt’s history changing act, to the many subsequent death threats she received as a result…nothing like Dao’s situation:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7mIO-yC9h4Q

Rosa’s niece, Urana: “What Dr. Dao s going to do is probably change the policy of United Airlines, but what my Aunt did is change history.”

Well said Urana McCauley.